Syria: Flash update on recent events - 24 January 2018

This update provides a summary of recent displacement, along with developments from the UNHCR co-led Sector/Clusters of Protection, Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) and Shelter/Non Food Items (SNFI).

KEY DISPLACEMENT STATISTICS (AS OF 16 JANUARY 2018)

1,480,179 displacements recorded by the CCCM Cluster in the last 12 months from affected areas of northern and southern Syria:

o 1,453,673 displacements from affected areas of northern Syria, including Ar-Raqqa (318,761), Aleppo (266,754), Hama (273,607), Deir-Ez-Zor (254,945), Idleb (245,399), Homs (36,067), Al Hassakeh (13,667), Lattakia (1,546) governorates, northern Syria. This also includes around 43,000 new displacements still under verification. The large majority of the new displacements recorded so far in January are from Idleb Governorate.

A spokesperson said yesterday (23 January) that the UN is deeply concerned by reports of fighting and military operations in Afrin district near the Syria-Turkish border. A number of civilians have reportedly lost their lives due to shelling and fighting over the past few days. An estimated 5,000 people from the border communities and central parts of Afrin district have reportedly been displaced to nearby villages. Another 1,000 have reportedly been displaced to Aleppo city neighbourhoods. There are 324,000 men, women and children, including 126,000 displaced people, living in the district.

The Bab Al-Salameh and Bab Al-Hawa border crossing points between Turkey and Syria reopened today (24 January) for both commercial and humanitarian cross-border shipments after UN shipments were temporarily put on hold on 20 January due to the security situation.

According to media reports, rescue workers in the besieged enclave of eastern Ghouta (near Damascus) accused Government forces of using chlorine gas during bombardment in Douma city today. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that at least 13 people including women and children had suffered suffocation.